You’ve heard of the Essex Man and the Hackney Hipster it’s time to meet the Punjabi Boys of Hounslow. Gary (Gurinder) and Bob are best friends growing up in Hounslow and while Bob (Balvinder) is your archetypal ‘Punjabi Boy’ who’s loud, enjoys eating Tandoori chicken and drinking whisky. Gary likes to spend his days reading Jean-Paul Sartre and speaking French.
“You’d forget you was Punjabi if you didn’t look in the mirror every now and then. I bet you never told your posho mates that you never even spoke English. We couldn’t speak English. Only Punjabi.”
Gary wants to find his place in the world, so he escapes West London and his own Punjabi community to study in France. Here, he discovers for the first time in his life that being Indian is interesting! However, when he falls for Aurelie, the first girl he meets, life starts to get complicated in ways he never imagined. Can Gary find love and a home in France or will he return to England and his own community?
Punjabi Boy, written by Amman Paul Singh Brar, was developed with the The Royal Court Theatre Critical Mass writing group and is directed by Mukul Ahmed.
The play will be performed at Hounslow Arts Centre from 5 to 24 July 2016 at 7.45pm. Tickets cost £10.00 (£8.00 concessions).